The Evidence

If we were to write a syllabus for a course on the importance of play, this would be it. Explore the world’s best research on play, spanning the fields of economics, psychology, child development, education and neuroscience:

Play is more than just fun

By Stuart Brown, TED talk

The play deficit

By Peter Gray, Aeon magazine

Playtime with mom helps boost toddlers’ under-developed brains

By Nurith Aizenman, NPR

Why preschool can save the world

By NPR’s Planet Money

Play Power: How to turn around our creativity crisis

By Laura Seargeant Richardson, The Atlantic

Let the children play, it’s good for them!

By Alison Gopnik, Smithsonian

The science of play

By Radiolab

Want to get your kids into college? Let them play

By Erika and Nicholas Christakis, Harvard College

Ending poverty using plastic cups and wooden spoons

By Marcus Veerman

Zeal for play may have propelled human evolution

By David Dobbs, The New York Times

What’s the point if we can’t have fun?

By David Graeber, The Baffler

Do schools kill creativity?

By Sir Ken Robinson, TED talk

Why do children need play?

By Bob Hughes, Project Wild Thing

Brains at play

By NPR

The hard facts behind soft skills

By James Heckman

The case for play

Download the groundbreaking report highlighting the most significant research findings on the impact of early play interventions, particularly for children living in poverty.